Our ultimate goal is to help you find your eternal companion. Throughout that journey, there’s bound to be some bumps in the road. Hopefully, those bumps are small, but whatever the path may throw at you, we want you to be prepared to face it with confidence.
It’s important to remember that unfortunately, there is a small percentage of people on any website who do not have the common sense to know what is right or wrong in a dating situation. We want you to be able to trust the people that you meet, and know what to do when you come across someone who you shouldn’t.
We asked Karlie, our Customer Support Manager (who also currently uses Mutual!) to tell us what she wanted the people of Mutual to know when it comes to safety. She gave us some great tips.
Stay Somewhere Public
All right, Number one: meet your date in a public place, especially when you’ve never met them before. This is essential to keeping you safe on a first date.
Control Your Transportation
Number two: take your own transportation, whether that’s your own vehicle, your friend’s vehicle, public transportation, whatever. Do not get into a vehicle with someone that you don’t know.
Avoid Going Into Private Spaces
Number three: and adding on to that, avoid going into private spaces with people you don’t know. Don’t go to their house on a first date, get in their car and especially don’t go into their room on a first date. If you are going to be in private spaces like someone’s house, make sure someone else is there.
Share Your Location
Alright, part two, number four: when you go on a date, make sure somebody that you trust has your location. Let them know how long you’re expected to be there and where you’re expected to go.
If your location moves from the spot that you said you’d be, make sure you text them and if you don’t text them, have them call you. Set that up beforehand so that they can help keep you safe.
Take A Screenshot Before The Date
Number five: take a screenshot of the person’s profile that you’re going out with. When you report people, we need to know exactly who you’re talking about so that we can take action immediately if the situation is serious. It helps us so much if you have some sort of evidence that we can match someone to.
Use Your Resources
Number six: use your resources, use those stalking capabilities. Use Facebook, use Instagram, LinkedIn, I don’t care. Find some way to make a connection with this person. Look at your mutual friends. Does this person have a mutual friend that you can reach out to you and double check with them to make sure this person is okay to go out with?
There’s no need to go totally overboard here but if someone knows that you know someone that they know they are going to be very much less likely to do something that would cause you harm.
If It’s Personal, Keep It Private
Alright, part three. Number seven: do not give someone your information until you trust them. That includes your address, your phone number, any sort of personal information, like maybe, you know, where you live. Don’t don’t tell people that unless you know them very well.
Take Cues From Messages
Number eight: take cues from their messages. Are you seeing red flags? Like are they asking to jump off the app onto maybe WhatsApp or a similar platform? Are they asking for nude photos? Are they sending illicit messages? Like sexting? These are all huge red flags you can avoid to keep yourself safe, especially when you meet somebody in person.
Video Chat Before You Meet
Number nine: use the video chat feature on Mutual to FaceTime someone beforehand. I wish I had known about this way sooner. I would’ve saved myself a lot of time, a lot of boredom, and a lot of pain. Use that feature. FaceTime so that you can get to know somebody face to face without meeting them in person beforehand.
Trust Yourself
And then bonus number 10: trust your gut. As members of The Church, we believe that we have access to the Holy Spirit, the Holy Ghost, and he can warn us when things are off. If you feel funny about going on a date with somebody and it’s not just first date jitters, if you feel weird about it, don’t go. It’s ok. It’s ok to say no. It’s okay to say “you know what, I had something come up,” or “you know what, I’m not feeling that great.” Honestly, there’s no reason that you have to go on a date if you don’t want to.
Alright, I hope these tips help you. It’s wonderful to see our user base just interacting so well with us on social media and also on the app. Please feel free to reach out to us if you have questions. Reach out to support and support@mutual.app. You can also find us on Instagram, Facebook, and most social media platforms.
Thanks, guys. Stay safe.
Karlie Smedley
Karlie Smedley operates as Mutual's Customer Support Manager. She directly handles all reports of illicit behavior and makes member safety her top priority. Also a single adult, Karlie uses Mutual and understands the ups and downs of dating in real life and online. She enjoys producing and playing music, extreme sports, and solo travel!
Mutual Team
Our team of love experts at Mutual works hard to make sure you have the most helpful dating advice out there. Whether you're still searching for your person or working to move your relationship from the chat bubble to in-person, we've got your back every step of the way.
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